Category Archives: Election

Maria Mateo and Nikki Barton – Your Haslemere South Ward Candidates

In March 2017, the local press reported that three elected councillors – half way through their term – have resigned from Haslemere Town Council.

This has caused by-elections to fill these councillor vacancies including one by-election in the Haslemere South Ward (2 vacancies) where Maria Mateo and Nikki Barton live.

Mateo and Barton are your Independent candidates for this by-election.

The by-election will be on Thursday 8th June. As you are aware, this is the same day as the general election. You will have two ballot papers on this day at The Georgian House Hotel polling station. One will be to vote in the general election for an MP (one ballot paper, one vote). The other ballot paper will be to vote in the Town Council by-election for two new town councillors (one ballot paper, two votes for two councillors).

On the ballot paper, which will be a green colour, you’ll see our names – MARIA MATEO & NIKKI BARTON – and there will be no party political logo; after all, we feel in a local election, local decisions should simply be about people, not political parties.

ABOUT MARIA

Maria Mateo

I care about Haslemere. My family have lived here for over ten years. I am actively involved in our wonderful community. I have worked as a solicitor and local adviser with Citizens Advice and now training as a Waverley Supervisor with this charity.

I’m a volunteer and have given many hours to several community groups (Haslemere First Respondents, Orchard Club, and Haslemere Rugby and Football Clubs). I organised a local school’s walking bus.

As your independent councillor, I will be open and transparent, listening to Haslemere residents and representing your views in the Council Chamber.

ABOUT NIKKI

Nikki at HillFest

With experience as your County Councillor, I have a proven track record in putting Haslemere first. I moved to Haslemere South with my family a decade ago and have engaged with the local community through: school governorship; Haslemere Hockey Club; Fringe Festival; Haslemere Vision; Chair – Haslemere Community Rail Partnership.

I will continue prioritising community engagement with openness and transparency. Never afraid to speak up and my record as Haslemere’s first Independent SCC can be seen via the pages of this blog.

With a wealth of experience and understanding of local government, I will champion good traffic management and child/pedestrian safety as a priority.

A refreshing breeze of independence

The Haslemere Town Council and Waverley Borough Council independent candidates wrote a letter to The Haslemere Herald this week but the letter was not published. Here it is:

A refreshing breeze of independence

Dear Sir

In an e-mail to members of the Local Government Association (Independent Group) this month, the Vice Chair, Marianne Overton MBE, opens by saying:

“It is clear that there is a refreshing breeze of Independence now flowing in and rooting in our Councils. Our Independent group members of all shades are strong local representatives, well connected with their communities and determined to concentrate on putting residents first.”

The Vice Chair signs off with the words:

“Our members bring a more listening and more inclusive government that looks at the facts, focuses on residents and leads to far better decisions. That I hope is what is on the way!”

Up and down the land there are more than 1,700 independent councillors representing 7.5m people in 39 councils.

On 7^th May there is a unique opportunity to elect twelve independent councillors to represent you on Haslemere Town Council and Waverley Borough Council.

If elected, we will be answerable not to a political party but to our constituents and our consciences. We commit to core principles of openness, transparency and accountability.

Please feel free to get in touch with us if you would like more information about our campaign. We are on independents@haslemerefirst.com

Signed by: http://www.haslemerefirst.com/election-imprint/

Haslemere Herald: Lead letter this week

This is the main letter in the Haslemere Herald today, written by Jeremy Barton, standing inHaslemere South ward in the town council election:

Jeremy Barton

Dear Sir,

Should there be an SNP candidate for Haslemere’s Town Council?

Of course not! There is no logic for a candidate to bring national politics to our parish council, HTC. From recent correspondence in your paper, it seems everyone agrees on this. So what possible reason is there for any prospective town councillor to be affiliated to any political party in the context of this parish council election?

Perhaps the logic is to align with a party’s policy or with a controlling party’s decisions at Waverley or Surrey cabinet levels. If so, why bother with a town council at all? Why not simply manage all town matters from the County or Borough executive offices?

Perhaps the thinking is to appeal to “people like us”. As a Haslemere resident, I shall be voting for a candidate in the General Election who is affiliated to a national party, but I definitely wouldn’t dare to presume that fellow residents of Haslemere who vote differently from me in that election are not just as committed to Halsemere and its best interests as I am. It is a nonsense to equate fervour for a particular party with fervour for Haslemere, or to claim party allegiance alongside free representation on Haslemere’s parish/town council.

To argue otherwise is simply… well, it’s simply perpetuating party politics in our parish and town!

I am affiliated to Haslemere. That is the only affiliation or allegiance I believe is right, on Haslemere Town Council. Being independent, in this context, means freedom from any manifesto, dictat or “messaging” from party office – or from whichever majority party prevails at either County Hall or Borough Offices; it means not feeling obliged to be consistent with policy announced by my local Member of Parliament or the Leader of County Council; and it means deciding relevant town matters in Town Council meetings and committees, and nowhere else. I commit, if elected, to listen to, and represent, the people of Haslemere in an open, transparent and independent-minded way, serving the furtherance of our precious town’s best interests.

Yours faithfully,

Jeremy Barton

Independent Candidate for Haslemere Town Council, Oversted, Scotland Lane, Haslemere Surrey GU27 3AW

Letter in the Haslemere Herald from Mark Jasper as independent candidate in Haslemere town council election

Mark Jasper is standing as an independent candidate in the Critchmere ward in the Haslemere town council election on 7th May 2015.

Here is the text of his letter that appeared in the Haslemere Herald this week.

Mark Jasper

I have grown increasingly frustrated at the way the views of Haslemere residents have become muffled by the presence of party politics on Haslemere Town Council.

This reality was perfectly demonstrated at a public meeting regarding the proposed Sturt Farm development. A large number of residents attended the meeting at Haslemere Hall, many spoke passionately, to raise legitimate concerns about the scale of the development, the impact such a development would have on local infrastructure and the environment. It was also an opportunity to hear the views of our town councillors, a number of whom ‘wear two hats’ as elected representatives of Waverley Borough council, the planning authority.

What residents witnessed was a heavily choreographed performance befitting the surroundings. The meeting concluded with a series of pre-prepared statements, which amounted to silence from the town council on the biggest single development proposed in Haslemere for a generation.

Haslemere deserves a voice, the voice of its residents. The town council must listen, genuinely and openly engage with residents and respond to their concerns, free of wider political influences.

The town council is not a place for party politics. It must support residents, business, community groups and be a strong vocal champion of its health and transport infrastructure.

I intend to stand as an independent candidate for the Critchmere ward at the forthcoming town council election. I will be joining other independent candidates in a loose alliance of similarly minded individuals, focussed on removing the politics and openly, transparently and firmly putting Haslemere first. I urge readers to cast aside national voting intentions, and at this very local level vote for your independent candidate.

Follow Mark on twitter, @VoteMarkJasper

Campaign Gets Off To A Good Start

A letter in today’s edition of the Haslemere Herald from the nine independent candidates for Haslemere town council election on 7th May 2015.

Dear Sir

Campaign Gets Off To A Good Start

Since our last letter (27th March, More choice in town council elections) to your newspaper where 9 residents wrote to announce their intention to stand as independent candidates in the Haslemere town council election on 7th May, there is news about our campaigning that we would like to share with your readers.

Two more residents have confirmed they will also stand as independents after reading our appeal for more candidates through the local press. We have started to post individual biographies on the www.haslemerefirst.com website to give voters some more information about all the candidates. These include the 2 new independent candidates: John Gibbons (Grayswood ward) and Mark Jasper (Critchmere ward).

We have a plan. We are not a political party so we will be campaigning as individuals but we will also be doing plenty of things together. This involves a public meeting, leaflet deliveries and street events. The dates will be publicly available via the website. We will be sending campaign e-mails to supporters; you can receive these regular updates by signing up and opting-in via our website or email us, please, on independents@haslemerefirst.com. You will be able to download a poster to print and put in your window to show support for our independent values and you may also like to take part in the fun poll on our website.

We are humbled by the offers of support from local residents and independent businesses following our Herald announcement. For those who may not have read our letter on 27^th March, we repeat our priorities for Haslemere. If elected, we will serve community interests by:

(a) listening to the concerns and needs of the community

(b) giving the Haslemere area the voice it deserves in statutory consultations

(c) standing up for the principle of open and robust engagement between the people of Haslemere and local government at all levels

Our campaigns have started well and we wish each candidate standing in the town council election a good and enjoyable campaign.

Lesley Banfield, 16 Weysprings, Haslemere GU27 1DE

Paul Buckler, Treetops, Hill Road, Haslemere GU27 2JP

David O’Brien, 16 Weysprings, Haslemere GU27 1DE

Áine Hall, 11 Hill Road, Haslemere GU27 2JP

Maria Iriarte Mateo, 4 Hollyridge, Haslemere GU27 2NP

Nigel Pyke, 37 Courts Hill Road, Haslemere GU27 2PN

Vivien Shorleson, 14 Courts Hill Road, Haslemere GU27 2NG

David Simmons, 47 Lower Street, Haslemere GU27 2NY

Miles Weston, Ridge Hill, Hill Road, Haslemere GU27 2JP

www.haslemerefirst.com
independents@haslemerefirst.com

Independent Candidates standing in town council election on May 7th